Frequent utilization of the emergency department for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Respiratory Research

Table 6 Outcomes of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients, according to the number of emergency department visits, stratified by state

Variables	1 ED visit	2 ED visits	≥ 3 ED visits	P value
California
Number of ED visits for COPD, no.	33,741	16,594	26,100	–
30-day ED revisit rate for COPD, % (95% CI)*	–	11.1 (10.6-11.6)	31.7 (31.2-32.3)	<0.001
Hospitalization rate for COPD, % (95% CI)	55.7 (55.2-56.2)	54.6 (53.9-55.4)	54.5 (53.9-55.1)	<0.001
Near-fatal event rate, % (95% CI)	6.8 (6.5-7.1)	9.2 (8.7-9.6)	9.6 (9.2-9.9)	<0.001
Florida
Number of ED visits for COPD, no.	35,657	17,416	25,228	–
30-day ED revisit rate for COPD, % (95% CI)*	–	9.8 (9.4-10.3)	28.2 (27.6-28.8)	<0.001
Hospitalization rate for COPD, % (95% CI)	68.6 (68.1-69.0)	71.7 (71.0-72.3)	69.9 (69.3-70.4)	<0.001
Near-fatal event rate, % (95% CI)	4.9 (4.7-5.1)	7.3 (6.9-7.7)	9.9 (9.5-10.3)	<0.001
Nebraska
Number of ED visits for COPD, no.	2009	1060	1301
30-day ED revisit rate for COPD, % (95% CI)*	–	8.6 (7.0-10.4)	27.2 (24.8-29.7)	<0.001
Hospitalization rate for COPD, % (95% CI)	52.5 (50.3-54.7)	56.6 (53.6-59.6)	53.0 (50.2-55.7)	0.08
Near-fatal event rate, % (95% CI)	6.9 (5.8-8.1)	7.9 (6.4-9.7)	11.2 (9.6-13.1)	<0.001

Abbreviations: COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ED emergency department, IQR interquartile range CI confidence interval.
*Excluding the index ED visits and hospitalizations.

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